The English Civil War Defences of London, by David Flintham
Booklet published by Stuart Press, 48 pages. A5 size booklet (N6623)
Between the Autumn of 1642 and the early-Summer of 1643, a massive circuit of earthworks was thrown up around London. A defensive scheme on this scale had not been witnessed in Britain before and so did not escape the attention of onlookers. In May 1643, William Lithgow, a Lanarkshire tailor, wrote: "London was never truly London till now; for now she sits like a noble lady upon a royall thron, securing all her encroaching pendicles under the wings of a motherly protection; yet these limits were never heretofore granted till the Parliament, for their better safety, confirmed this construction, that (Grand Cayro excepted), I have not seen a larger inveloped compasse within the whole universe'". From the introduction:
London's defences were the largest and perhaps the most sophisticated of any urban defence schemes constructed during the English Civil Wars. Whilst hardly comparing with schemes elsewhere in Europe, in Britain, only those at Oxford come close. However, whilst there are some similarities between the defences of London and Oxford, there are also differences - whilst Oxford's defences were basically a bastioned circuit, London's defences comprised, in the main, of a series of forts joined by ramparts and ditches. Whilst there are other examples of the 'connected forts' type defence schemes (Bristol and Plymouth for example), it is the size of London's defences which demonstrate their uniqueness. But if London's defences do not represent the norm for ECW urban defence schemes, they, do have at least a passing resemblance to lines of circumvallation such as those constructed to surround Colchester in the summer of 1648. Is this just coincidence? Contents in the booklet include:
Attack and Demolition
The Layout of the Defences
The 1643 Defences: Planning and Construction
The 1642 Defences and the Edgehill Campaign
London and the Descent into Civil War
The condition of the booklet is generally very good. The cover has one or two minor scuffs, but the staple spine is intact, and all pages are intact, unblemished and tightly bound.
There is a small price sticker on the rear side cover.
Between the Autumn of 1642 and the early-Summer of 1643, a massive circuit of earthworks was thrown up around London. A defensive scheme on this scale had not been witnessed in Britain before and so did not escape the attention of onlookers. In May 1643, William Lithgow, a Lanarkshire tailor, wrote: "London was never truly London till now; for now she sits like a noble lady upon a royall thron, securing all her encroaching pendicles under the wings of a motherly protection; yet these limits were never heretofore granted till the Parliament, for their better safety, confirmed this construction, that (Grand Cayro excepted), I have not seen a larger inveloped compasse within the whole universe'". From the introduction:
London's defences were the largest and perhaps the most sophisticated of any urban defence schemes constructed during the English Civil Wars. Whilst hardly comparing with schemes elsewhere in Europe, in Britain, only those at Oxford come close. However, whilst there are some similarities between the defences of London and Oxford, there are also differences - whilst Oxford's defences were basically a bastioned circuit, London's defences comprised, in the main, of a series of forts joined by ramparts and ditches. Whilst there are other examples of the 'connected forts' type defence schemes (Bristol and Plymouth for example), it is the size of London's defences which demonstrate their uniqueness. But if London's defences do not represent the norm for ECW urban defence schemes, they, do have at least a passing resemblance to lines of circumvallation such as those constructed to surround Colchester in the summer of 1648. Is this just coincidence? Contents in the booklet include:
Attack and Demolition
The Layout of the Defences
The 1643 Defences: Planning and Construction
The 1642 Defences and the Edgehill Campaign
London and the Descent into Civil War
The condition of the booklet is generally very good. The cover has one or two minor scuffs, but the staple spine is intact, and all pages are intact, unblemished and tightly bound.
There is a small price sticker on the rear side cover.
| Condition | New |